


Zemelanika News Article

by wheel_pen



Series: Cinder [7]
Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-05
Updated: 2016-03-05
Packaged: 2018-05-24 21:47:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,562
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6167866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wheel_pen/pseuds/wheel_pen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A partial news article about the nation of Zemelanika.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Zemelanika News Article

**Author's Note:**

> The bad words are censored; that’s just how I do things.   
> Technically Cinder is not a slave, but he’s still living under subjugation; inherent in this are dubious consent, unhealthy relationships, and violence.  
> I hope you enjoy this original work, which was inspired by many different stories.

Just outside the tiny fishing village of Podliva Kliukva, a pair of women stands resolutely on the rocky point, backs to the grey inlet of the Kara Sea. Their eyes are blank as they face the scrub-covered land, and their thick cloaks don't whip in the chill ocean breeze--they are cast in bronze, life-size images of the _Puteshestvennik_ , the Travelers, known here as Annalia and her adult daughter, Klavdiya. People from other parts of the country sometimes come to Podliva Kliukva to view the statues, which supposedly mark the spot where the ancient pair disembarked from their Kaskian ship. For the approximately 500,000 people who live in this country of Zemelanika, Annalia and Klavdiya are folk heroes, figures of legend much like Robin Hood of England or William Tell of Switzerland. People tell their children stories about them at night, about how they brought order to a chaotic land of warring tribes centuries, or perhaps millennia, ago; whether they were real people who actually existed is, for most, beside the point.

Zemelanika (roughly translated as "strawberry land") might seem like a place of legend itself, a remarkably fertile, if cool, valley tucked away in one of the most inhospitable regions imaginable: north-central Siberia. Located at about 75 degrees N latitude, the Arctic Circle was left behind nearly 650 miles ago; during the summer the sun shines nearly twenty-four hours a day, and during the winter, it hardly creeps above the horizon at all. The country covers about 20,000 square miles--the size of Vermont and New Hampshire put together--mostly on a peninsula jutting out from the Taymyrskiy region of Russia, just north of the Byrranga Mountains. Zemelanika may be the northernmost of the known Annalian League nations, but the waters around it--the Kara Sea to the west and the Laptev Sea to the east--are largely ice-free, even in the winter, due to warm ocean currents. These currents also provide the land with a climate suitable for cool-weather crops with a short growing season, such as vegetables, winter wheat, and the country's famous strawberries. With abundant fish from the surrounding seas and the hardy livestock kept by most rural families, Zemelanika has almost always been totally self-sufficient in terms of food.

With natural barriers like the seas, the mountains, and the harsh, barren plains of Siberia, Zemelanika has also been largely protected from outside influences. There is no television reception, no Internet connection, and telephone service only in the largest cities, for the elite. Motorized vehicles are seen in the urban areas, but nowhere else. Though the country maintains contact with other League nations, few people have ever visited this distant land, and fewer still have ever left it. Time has not entirely passed the Zemelanikans by, however. Electricity and running water are standard features of every home, even in the most rural provinces. People communicate quickly through the use of telegraphs, and they travel by horse or railroad. The citizens benefit from government-funded health care, a strong educational system, and a remarkably low crime rate. The people here aren't rich; whether farmers in the country or merchants in the cities, people work hard for their incomes, but overall they seem to be content with their lives.

Ksana Sakhoff is 83 years old and still works at the bakery her great-grandfather began more than 150 years ago in Poltoro Pomidor, a city of about 10,000 in the center of the country. She could retire, she says, but she likes working; she's been doing it since she was about fifteen and became an apprentice at the bakery. Now she teaches her teenage granddaughter, Kira, the same pastry secrets she once learned. The two of them walk home alone nearly every night, but Ksana says she has never had to fear. "The soldiers and police patrol the city all the time, every alleyway," she says. "During the winter the streetlamps burn so brightly, we must use extra-thick curtains to block out the light to sleep." Only once was she ever nervous, when a young man approached her many years ago to ask if she had a light for his cigarette. "I told him he ought not to smoke, that it was unhealthy," she recalls warmly. "A year later we were married."

_Order_ is the defining characteristic of Zemelanika. It is not that people fear the law, or its enforcers; rather, they speak frequently and fervently of their desire to "keep the peace," to "not cause trouble," to "stay calm." Crowded marketplaces are hushed and organized; no one shouts on the street; even children don't throw tantrums in public places. Although to most people this would seem pleasant at first, some have grown frustrated with this particular social, historical, and cultural characteristic. "We're learning about civil rights movements in my world history class," says one 20-year-old student at the country's leading university, Raduznaia Universitet, in the capital city of Miodemaslo (pop. 35,000). "That could never happen here. Any kind of marching or yelling protests--even if we were yelling in support of the government, we'd still be yelling, disturbing things." People with problems or complaints are told to "go through the line," i.e., consult the various levels of administration that oversee almost everything in daily life, but younger people especially have little patience for this. "People think it's the worst thing, to cause a fuss," agrees another student. "If you yell out to a friend, or kiss your boyfriend in public, older people give you such awful looks."

But don't imagine that just because Zemelanikans tend to be circumspect in public, they never let their hair down and have some fun. _Tanetsdom_ , or "dance houses," abound in the cities and are frequented at all hours by young adults who can eat a meal, drink, dance, and sleep it off in a hotel room, all without leaving the same self-contained, sound-proofed establishment that is usually marked only by a tiny nameplate on a nondescript door. Sports such as _ledshar_ , which is played on ice skates and bears some similarity to hockey, draw large crowds whether played professionally in specially-built venues or by amateurs on frozen ponds. Plays and musical performances, often held in conjunction with religious and traditional holiday festivals, are popular among people from all faiths (see sidebar **Religion** ). Amateur horse racing and shooting competitions among military and police personnel are frequent recreational events as well (ordinary citizens are not allowed to own guns, except hunting rifles in the rural areas).

Stanislav Podelov, the nephew of our guide, Boris, is turning eight today; birthdays here are celebrated only for children, with the final and most extravagant party held for those turning twenty, the cultural and legal age of adulthood. Gifts, brightly colored decorations, music, and sweet treats like fruit pies and caramel apples make the family gathering seem much like a birthday party in any Western nation. Today's celebration is doubly welcomed, however, because it is the first time Boris has been home since he was imprisoned three years ago. A clothing merchant, he was convicted of smuggling Western clothing into the country and selling it as a locally-made product, with a sentence of eight years in jail. However, because he speaks some English, his sentence was commuted in exchange for looking after the American visitors. Boris is a fast talker, a born salesman; his relatives run the gamut from the uncle who drinks too much to the sister who knows everyone's business to the mother who insists everyone eat a little more. In other words, people all of us know--hard-working, imperfect but basically decent, generous even with foreign strangers. In such a remote and exotic part of the world, it's comforting to realize that such familiar kinds of people exist.

There is someone in the country whose position is absolutely unique, however. Oleg Kondratovich is the Shashka of Zemelanika, a word roughly translated as "king"--or "sabre," connoting military might. The Shashka is not just the most powerful man in the country; he is all-powerful, potentially as much a dictator as any. Every other citizen of Zemelanika is subject to the law, which can come down swift and harsh on those who disturb the peace and order, but the Shashka is the one person _above_ the law. He is the final authority in all matters executive, legislative, and judicial, with the power of commander-in-chief over the military and the ability to veto bills passed by the legislature or ordinances from the Council of Ministers. Kondratovich is also the Supreme Court of the land--but taking your case from the extensive appeals system already in place to the _Shashkasud_ , or King's Court, can be risky: the Shashka can conduct the trial in any way he chooses, with no restrictions or rules about gathering evidence, taking testimony, or basing judgment on anything more than a whim. It was the Shashka who decided, possibly without going through any kind of legal channels, to set Boris Podelov free to act as translator and guide to the foreign journalists--and Podelov is well aware that if anything happens to those visitors, quietly finishing the rest of his original sentence would be the _best_ outcome he could hope for.

About 35 years old, tall, wiry, and darkly good looking, with a mysterious scar on his right cheek, Kondratovich radiates the confidence of an absolute ruler but the disinterest of a man who would much rather have his old job, as commander of the _Ostreliat_ , the army's sharpshooters division. The bloody civil war of XXXX, however, killed his uncle, the previous Shashka, and his two cousins, leaving Kondratovich next in line. This Shashka is no politician or bureaucrat, but he _is_ a decision-maker, and he is determined to maintain the peace and order currently enjoyed by his country. Legends and rumors about Kondratovich abound among the citizens of the country: that he can divine the truth just by looking at someone, that he can talk to animals, that he cannot be killed. The intensity of his gaze and his reputation for unpredictable, sometimes violent, behavior keep most people at a distance; his younger sister and teenage niece frequently travel abroad, and even those who live and work in the main governmental castle every day try to avoid him. Aside from the odd kitchen boy or so, his only companion is his right hand man, Sergeant Patrick Gildea, widely regarded as the man to see about any matter requiring the Shashka's attention.

Gildea claims to be a former sniper in the Irish Republican Army; he also served under Kondratovich in the _Ostreliat_ and has a charming smile, a diplomatic manner, and reputedly, as ruthless a nature as the Shashka. He shrugs off questions about prisoner torture, lengthy imprisonments without trials, and executions: "People like to have their streets quiet at night," he points out, "and the Shashka keeps them that way." Many citizens seem to agree with him. Prisoners' rights, such as legal representation and humane prison conditions, are minded as strictly as any other set of rights in the country, says Vladimir Muraveit, a 47-year-old professor of law and philosophy at Raduznaia Universitet, "comparable to, and probably more consistent than, those in many Western nations." The normal Zemelanikan legal system outlaws all punishments except fines and imprisonment--no whippings, stock-standings, or brandings here--and no death sentence can be handed down. (The military has a separate legal system for its members which allows a few more physical punishments, but there are still no capital crimes.) Those who attempt the _Shashkasud_ , however--and, allegedly, about anyone who comes in contact with the Shashka--take the chance that Kondratovich may, theoretically, deem a jaywalker worthy of execution, or keep someone who has offended him locked away in a cell for years without any kind of legal rights. "He's the Shashka," Muraveit says simply. "No one else can do these things, and if anyone else tries, he comes down hard on them. There's no denying the potential for abuse exists. But I think it is not any worse than in most other countries. Isn't it strange how people who are already so powerful often break the law, abuse their positions, to gain even more power? Our Shashka has no laws to break."

**

Sidebar: **Clothing**

In the countryside, the usual dress is simple, durable, and warm, similar to what we might associate with traditional Russia: woolen trousers and tunics and workboots for the men, with colorful skirts, blouses, and headscarves for the women. In the cities the clothing has become more tailored and Westernized, though some "staple" American items--such as denim jeans, t-shirts, and tennis shoes--are only rarely found. Clothing designs often have a military feel, with rows of buttons, edge piping, or shoulder decorations, reflecting the popularity of the military and the police force in the country.

Sidebar: **Holidays**

With half the country Jewish, religious holidays such as Rosh Hashanah, Pesach (Passover), and Hanukkah are also celebrated secularly with parties and festivals. Natural holidays, with their roots in the indigenous religious tradition and agricultural cycles, mark planting and harvesting as well as the summer and winter solstices. Additionally, there are several days devoted to remembering the accomplishments of various branches of the military and the police force.

Sidebar: **Religion**

Thanks to its history of absorbing refugees from Russia, Zemelanika has one of the highest percentages of Jewish citizens in the world. According to the Ministry of Culture, almost 50% of its population--nearly 250,000 people--are practicing Jews, and it's estimated that an unusually high number of these are converts, which are rarely found in Judaism. Maryia Zevnogashe, a 33-year-old mother of two in the town of Vyderiagoda (pop. 24,000) in the southeastern region, converted to Judaism in her early 20s. "As a child I had so many wonderful adults in my life--teachers, merchants, the local constables--who were Jewish," she says. "They inspired me to learn more about the religion, and then I wanted to be a part of its heritage, which is so strong and lawful. I want that kind of heritage for my children." Another 23% of the people are Russian Orthodox, with 12% calling themselves atheists or agnostics. The final 15% are practitioners of various other religions and denominations, including Buddhism, Hinduism, Roman Catholicism, and indigenous traditions. Whatever their religion, wealthy widows and widowers often retire to abbeys or monasteries in their old age, to live out their years in serenity and comfort while engaging in charitable activities. As for the Shashka, he claims to be uninterested in religion: "Heaven is order," he says, "and Hell is chaos. I've not thought about it any more than that."

Sidebar: **Language**

Almost everyone in the country speaks Zemelanikan, a mutually-intelligible dialect of Russian. About 65% of the citizens are bilingual, with Hebrew (35%), Russian proper (20%), and Yiddish (15%) being the most common second languages. Cathayan (a dialect of Chinese spoken in the League nation of Cathay) and Hebrew are popular "foreign" languages to learn in school. English is spoken by very few, mostly those in the upper echelons of business and government who have frequent international dealings. The Shashka speaks English, taught to him by his chief assistant, Irish-born Sergeant Patrick Gildea. Unlike in many League countries, the use of translating devices is not common in Zemelanika.

 


End file.
